


Beyond Walls of Stardust

by Mirax3163



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angry Keith (Voltron), Blood and Injury, Cuddling & Snuggling, Emotional Baggage, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Feelings Realization, Hurt Keith (Voltron), Hurt Shiro (Voltron), Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Torture, Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, Keith/Shiro (Voltron) Angst, M/M, Near Death Experiences, POV Alternating, POV Keith (Voltron), POV Shiro (Voltron), Protective Shiro (Voltron), Shiro (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Shiro (Voltron) is a Mess, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-30
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:48:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26201398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mirax3163/pseuds/Mirax3163
Summary: One mission gone wrong leaves Shiro seemingly drifting galaxies away, and Keith is forced to scale impossible walls before he can reach the man inside and pull him back home.
Relationships: Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 88





	1. Chapter 1

Keith’s desperate plea was the only thing that rang in Shiro’s head as he barreled down the Galra station’s corridors. Sentries and soldiers alike were flung like toys into walls, sliding to the ground limp and broken, even those twice the size of the Black Paladin. He couldn’t feel a thing, his whole body numb yet coursing with adrenaline at the same time as he let loose aggressive cries and howls with each enemy he crushed. 

_“Please, Shiro… make them stop…”_

Keith’s broken, sobbing voice sent Shiro into a blind panic when he received the transmission aboard the Castle.The last mission the paladins had been on was covert aboard a Galra cruiser. They did everything right, the plan went perfectly, but Keith didn’t make it out. 

It should have been Shiro.

He knew they would be interrogating Keith, torturing him, Shiro had been through it himself. But when he heard Keith _begging_ , Shiro lost all inhibition. He had no idea what the Galra could have done to Keith to drive him to that point. He knew it was likely a trap to lure him in. He didn’t care. 

Keith should never have been the one in the Galra's hands. 

As Shiro entered the next hallway, a group of five Galra elite guards, each at least eight heads taller than Shiro, suddenly blocked the way in front of him. Shiro could feel the heat of his armed prosthetic radiating onto his face through the broken visor of his helmet. Without even thinking he charged, the bright purple radiance of his cyborg fist crashing square into the first Galra’s chest plate, immediately shattering it with an explosion of violet energy. The force of the blow sent the massive warrior flying back into two of his squad mates, toppling them and sending them skidding nearly forty feet across the floor. Shiro kept himself from sliding the same distance with use of his jet pack to counter the momentum of his strike. As he turned to face the remaining two guards still on their feet, they exhibited startled pause for only a few moments before bracing against the red bayard, which Shiro brought to bear at full force with his left hand. A sharp crack resonated through the hall as the side of the sword collided with and bounced off of the guard’s energy shield. Shiro braced his sword with his energized prosthetic as the Galra rushed him, shoving him towards the wall, but the Black Paladin fired his jet pack and launched himself skyward before they could pin him. Narrowly avoiding smacking into the ceiling, Shiro landed in a roll behind the two Galra, spinning quickly on the ground before firing his jet pack again to send him barreling straight for their backs. He slammed them against the wall this time, his glowing arm crushing the armor of one from the force, and the other was caught between his hulking comrade and the unforgiving metal wall of the corridor. Shiro landed back on his feet and held the red bayard and his lethal prosthesis at the ready, but it seemed the impact had knocked both of the Galra unconscious.

The other two that had skidded down the hall were now clambering back to their feet, abandoning the first victim of shiro’s charging attack where he laid. Shiro let out a feral growl, as he charged yet again, but before he could close the distance between him and the two Galra, they split, each heading opposite ways down the hall running perpendicular to him. He skidded to a stop, trying to decide which one to chase after, when he heard a pained cry. 

Keith.

He snapped his head in the direction of the sound, eyes wide, and started to run. 

Then he saw him. As Shiro rounded the corner to his left, he saw through an open door, a limp figure on his knees, arms chained above him to the ceiling, adorned in blood-smeared, scorched red and white paladin armor. 

There was a Galra at the entrance, attempting to flee. Shiro shook himself out of his panicked trance and snarled, charging, his elbow colliding with the center of the armorless Galra’s chest, crushing his torso with a sickening crackle against the wall. The Galra let out an agonizing grunt and spat blood before going limp, and Shiro pulled his arm away and let him collapse to the ground, lifeless. 

Shiro turned to face Keith, and suddenly felt his knees go weak. His heart pounded so hard in his chest he thought it might break his ribs. “Keith?” he called out, voice weak and trembling. He stepped forward on shaky legs that threatened to give out as his eyes fixed on Keith’s pale, bruised and blood smeared face. He collapsed to his knees in front of the motionless Red Paladin and the violet glow faded from his right arm as he raised it to gently touch the other's fragile, crimson stained cheek. 

“Keith?” 

He took the young man’s head firmly in both hands and tilted it up, finding him completely limp. Ruts had been carved through the grime on his face by tears of desperation. His lips were purple, skin pale and cold. 

“ _Keith!_ ” Shiro’s voice was laced with panic and fear, as he shouted at the lifeless face of his closest friend. His fingers curled in blood caked raven hair as he felt his eyes sting. He pulled the Red Paladin’s head to his own, resting his cracked visor to Keith’s forehead. 

“Damn it Keith, fucking wake up,” Shiro demanded as his voice broke with sobs. Burning tears fell down his face as he squeezed his eyes shut. “Please.... ” _You can't die now, not when it should have been me..._

Then he heard a soft noise. His eyes shot open again and he pulled his head back, gently shaking Keith’s head in his hands. “Keith? Can you hear me? _Keith?_ ” 

He heard another soft groan, and the corner of Keith’s mouth twitched. Shiro watched, frozen, as Keith’s eyebrows began to move ever so slightly. His eyelids fluttered for a millisecond. 

“Keith, I’m here, I’m gonna get you out,” Shiro said through clenched teeth. He let go of Keith’s head and slid an arm around his waist, holding him firmly against his own body as he reached up with his prosthetic, powered it up, and sliced the chain suspending Keith’s arms with one motion. Shiro leaned his head forward as Keith’s arms fell down around his neck, and scooped up Keith’s legs with his other arm. He hoisted the smaller paladin into his arms, his dead, limp weight nothing against the ferocious adrenaline still coursing through Shiro’s veins. Shiro made his way towards the hall, checking each end to make sure there were no soldiers waiting to ambush him. Surprisingly, the halls were empty aside from the soldiers and sentries Shiro had already wasted on his way there. Shiro ignored the voice in his head telling him something wasn’t right as he began to make his way back to where he had boarded the station. He checked carefully around every corner, but still, nothing was there waiting to pounce on him. 

“You’re gonna be okay, Keith, just hang in there, I got you,” Shiro murmured to the limp paladin in his arms. As Shiro made it halfway to where the Black Lion sat waiting, Shiro heard a weak groan come from below. He glanced down, and saw Keith's eyes were barely open, his head now with some tension to it as he rested it against Shiro’s shoulder. “Sh… Shiro,” Keith croaked. 

“Shh, Keith, it’s okay, it’s me, I’m here,” Shiro whispered. He squeezed Keith tighter, slowing to lean against a wall to put his full attention on Keith. But the injured man in his arms gave a weak, pained whine as Shiro realized he was squeezing him too tightly. “Shit, I’m sorry-” he whispered. He pushed his nose to Keith’s temple into a nuzzle, trying to comfort him even just a little bit. Although he knew Keith must be in excruciating pain, the sound of his clear, shaky breathing was a comfort to Shiro. At least he was alive, and somewhat alert, because that meant he had a much higher chance of surviving until Shiro could get him to the castle. 

“Nnh… Sh.. Shiro,” Keith croaked again, but that’s all Shiro would let him get out. 

“Keith, don’t talk, it’s okay,” Shiro murmured. “I got you. I’m not gonna let them hurt you anymore.” Shiro’s voice shook as he talked softly to the broken paladin in his arms, the paladin that _shouldn't_ be laying broken in his arms. 

_The paladin that should be me._

He had to keep moving. He leaned off of the wall and kept walking, until he came to yet another corner and positioned his back to it as he slowly leaned over, peering down the perpendicular corridor. He saw it was clear, but then realized he couldn’t hear Keith’s breathing anymore. He glanced back down and found Keith’s eyes closed and his head limp again. 

“Keith?” 

A jolt of terror ran through Shiro’s body as Keith remained motionless. “Fuck,” He hissed, continuing down the hall. He shoved his head down as far as he could to Keith’s mouth, and stayed still for a few moments. He was still breathing, barely. Shiro had to take this as reassurance enough.

Shiro’s footsteps echoed eerily along the empty walkway as he approached the area where he boarded. As he was about to round the corner to the last corridor, Shiro peered around to see an army of Galra waiting for him, blocking the way to Black. 

Shiro slammed himself back against the wall and his heart nearly stopped. “No,” He whispered. “Please no, no, I have to get Keith out of here-” He felt his eyes sting again as his legs gave and he slid to the floor. His adrenaline was wearing out. His arms tightened around Keith and sobs hitched in his throat again as he fought the feeling of desperation creeping up his throat like bile. “No, please no,” There was no way he could take on that many Galra at once. When he boarded, they were spread out, unaware, easy pickings, but now…

He clutched Keith ever closer. He couldn't accept that this might be the end, but Keith was lifeless in Shiro's arms, and there was a dead end on his only escape route. He couldn't accept that he brought this pain and suffering upon his dearest friend, and that he wouldn't even have a chance to even attempt to earn Keith's forgiveness. _I can't accept that I killed the one person that I love._

Shiro's heart felt as if it had transformed into a black hole as he let despair sink deep into his bones. He didn't even feel that he deserved to hold the man in his arms, the man that he caused so much undeserved pain and trauma.

"I'm sorry, Keith." He barely recognized his own voice, choked with sobs. 

At that moment, Shiro felt the metal floor beneath him tremble, as the loud, shearing noise of the station ripping apart filled his ears. His heart jumped as he felt Black’s ferocious presence in his head. 

She was going to save them.

Shiro grabbed the corner of the corridor as he felt himself starting to slide. The floor beneath him was rotating, twisted under the sheer force of Black’s blunt attempt to make her way into the station’s walls and find him. He heard the muffled noise of her cannon blasting through heavy metal plating, and started to feel heat radiating from down the corridor behind him. He managed to pull himself up, bracing himself with his legs, enough to peer around the corner again, and his eyes went wide as he witnessed the muzzle of the massive mechanical lion breach the ceiling. A deafening roar echoed through the station as she threatened the army of Galra, now stumbling and scattering in all directions. Shiro could feel the vacuum of space beginning to suck the air out of the station, and knew he had to move fast in order to keep Keith from dying of exposure. He grabbed firmly to the wall, hoisted himself up with his legs and his arm, and fired his jet pack, hoping the momentum of it along with the vacuum would carry them far enough to land safely within Black’s muzzle. 

Black heard his thoughts and began to shove her head further into the station, effectively snapping Shiro up before he had time to register what she was doing. He crashed to the floor of the cargo area and barely kept hold of Keith as he caught himself on one of the ruts across the floor. He felt black retreat from the station and rocket herself away, then signaled Shiro when it was safe for him to try to get up again. 

Shiro gathered Keith back into his arms, but as he started to stand, his entire body threatened to give. He slumped against the wall, breathing hard, his legs too weak and too spent to carry himself or Keith any further.

The soothing presence of Black entered his mind once more, and Shiro closed his eyes, thanking her for the rescue. She assured him she would deliver him and Keith back to the castle in one piece. Shiro thanked her again, before feeling the lion speed back up, headed back toward where the castle laid in wait for their return. 

Shiro looked back down at Keith, holding him close, resting his cheek to Keith’s forehead. Stray tears still fell from his eyes as he took deep, shaky breaths. 

_Just hang on, Keith, please._

***

The muffled sound of the healing pod’s protective screen deactivating greeted Keith as he came to. He opened his heavy eyelids slowly, squinting from the brightness of the interior of the castle. A dark shape leaned over him, saving his eyes from the abrasive light, and Keith had to let his eyes focus before he recognized Shiro's half relieved, half worried face looking down upon him. He gave a soft, inadvertent groan before getting out a weak "Shiro...." 

The broad-shouldered man looking over him gave a reassuring smile. "Keith... hey. How are you feeling?" 

There was a ghost of a tremble in his voice. Keith tried to smile back, but it likely just looked like his mouth was twitching painfully. 

"Like a sack of bricks," he replied bluntly. For some reason everyone else always seemed to leave the Altean healing pods more or less at a hundred percent, albeit tired, but both times Keith had been subjected to it, he felt like he'd been sapped of every last drop of stamina to the point he could barely even sit up. He wondered if it had something to do with his Galra genes. Even so, he was fully healed, but just felt awfully groggy. Shiro knew this from the last time, so he already had an arm around Keith's back, pulling him into a sitting position. 

The feeling of Shiro's arm across his back suddenly reminded Keith of being carried. The memory was vague as it came back to him... All he could remember was someone, who must have been Shiro, carrying his limp body, pain assaulting him as the vibration of each step moved through him. 

He remembered now, or at least had an understanding, that he had been in a Galra station, interrogated and tortured. That explains the anxious expression Keith was greeted with. He couldn't remember too many details and he hoped it would stay that way. 

He groaned again as his head started to spin, and Shiro pulled him to his chest before his arms could buckle and throw him back down onto the floor of the pod. Keith welcomed the feeling of Shiro's arm tightening around him, and the faint sound of Shiro’s pounding heart as his head rested against the larger man’s chest. He squeezed his eyes shut to help his head stop spinning. Shiro's voice was quiet, the tone he always used when speaking to Keith directly. 

"You need help getting to your room?"

Keith didn't really want to admit it, but he might need to be carried just a little further. He gave a nod, and then felt Shiro's other arm slip beneath his knees, Keith snaking his arm around Shiro's neck as he was gently lifted up. 

"Please tell me Lance isn't going to see this," Keith mumbled, voice weak, and he tried to chuckle, but it just came out as a half cough. 

He had to keep his eyes closed to keep the feeling of vertigo at bay, but he could hear the smirk in Shiro's voice. "Don't worry, I gave them a little task to keep them busy. Three bots on the training deck, at once." 

Keith grinned. "They might end up in worse shape than me." 

Keith's smile faded as he heard only silence from Shiro. He must have been in really, really bad shape for Shiro not to show even fake amusement at that. It made Keith feel a familiar, anxious twist in his stomach.

"Sorry," Keith mumbled. "I guess I was hurt pretty bad?" 

"No, it’s… it’s okay,” Shiro replied. “You were,” He added after a pause. Keith couldn’t gauge Shiro's level of anxiety with his eyes closed, but there was something very off about Shiro's voice. 

"I can't remember much.... I guess I should be grateful," Keith added, hoping to reassure the man carrying him. 

"Yeah..." was all Shiro seemingly managed to get out before going silent. 

Keith peeked one eye open to find they were almost at his room. The door split in the middle and Shiro stepped inside and to the bed, where he gently and slowly lowered Keith down, letting go of his legs first, before easing his back down. His hand slid behind Keith’s neck and seemed to linger there as he laid Keith’s head on the pillow before pulling away. 

As Keith opened his eyes now that he was stationary again, he caught Shiro’s hand brushing back some of his bangs from his eyes. The touch was slight, but it sent jolts of longing across his skin that threatened a groan to escape him. It happened every time Shiro touched him now, whether it was a hug or just an accidental brush of Shiro’s hand on his arm. It was getting annoying to say the least, to have this tug on his chest every time something so simple happened, but he didn’t quite know what it was yet. 

Shiro had pulled a blanket over Keith and a chair to his bedside where he now sat, hands squeezing each other, almost as if with nerves. Keith turned his head slightly towards the other man. “Thanks,” he murmured. Shiro let a smile twitch across his face, but it vanished quickly. “And… thanks for saving me, too.” 

Shiro let out a soft sigh. “You don’t have to thank me for that.” No smile on his face. Keith opened his mouth to ask what was wrong, but he knew he probably wouldn’t get the truth. He never did when Shiro was this shaken up, but he asked anyway.

“.. What happened out there?” 

Something changed in Shiro’s eyes and he looked away. “Nothing too different from the usual. Just another rescue mission. I’m just.. I’m glad you’re okay.” He forced a smile again. 

Keith frowned. He expected as much, but this time it was so obvious a lie, Keith wondered why Shiro even bothered responding. 

“Shiro…” 

That was all he had to say to make Shiro’s eyes move to the floor and a larger, surrendering sigh to escape him. “Sorry…”

Keith just sighed. He didn't have the energy to try and fight the truth out of Shiro right now, so he decided to leave it be for the time being. “It’s okay… we can talk later. it's just, I can tell you were scared.”

Shiro looked up at him, his expression betraying the truth in Keith’s statement. Keith reached a hand out and put it over one of Shiro’s, and he quickly relaxed it and let it slip into Keith’s, squeezing hard. 

“I’m sorry, you shouldn’t be the one comforting me right now-”

“No,” Keith said firmly, his eyes as unwavering as his voice. “You’re dealing with enough already. I’ll be fine… you’re the one who saw everything.” Keith knew he was half lying to himself. He had no idea what would happen to him once the memories returned, because he knew they would, eventually; he would just have to deal with them then. But seeing the state Shiro was in now, the last thing he wanted was to make Shiro worry about him even more.

Shiro’s expression remained nervous and he broke eye contact again, something Keith had seen from him before when he felt extremely guilty about something. He wanted desperately to pry, and wrangle the truth out of him, but he was tired, and so was Shiro. 

In his weakened state, it was hard for Keith to keep his train of thought for more than a minute or so. The feeling of Shiro’s fingers gently kneading into his palm was distracting him, and he let his eyes lose focus, and his body relax again, not having realized he had become tense. He closed his eyes and let out a gentle breath. 

Keith knew that if he dozed off alone, Shiro would just sit here for hours worrying over him and refusing to get any sleep. Cuddling wasn't something that came up often; usually it only happened when one of them was so incapacitated, it was the only way to get them to calm down. Right now though, Keith considered that to be the situation. He needed Shiro to get some sleep, and the only way he could think of to get that to work was if Shiro was in the bed with him. 

“I know you’re not gonna leave this room till I’m better, so why don’t you lay down with me,” Keith said quietly. He felt Shiro’s hands stop, and knew he must not have expected the suggestion. “Maybe you’ll at least get some sleep if you’re here with me.” 

“I don't know,” Shiro murmured. "I don't want to wake you up every minute-"

"Please, Shiro?" Keith said softly, opening his eyes to give Shiro a gentle gaze.

Shiro froze. The look the man gave him sent chills running down Keith's spine. 

"Shiro?" Keith asked, voice laced with worry.

"S-Sorry... Sure, just for a little bit," Shiro mumbled. He almost sounded scared.

He opened his eyes wider as he felt Shiro lay his hand back on top of the bed. He started to try and sit up again, but Shiro’s arms were already around him. 

“I got you,” he said quietly.

Keith considered demanding to know what was going on right then, but the feeling of Shiro gently lifting and moving him made his aching limbs remind him why he was so tired. Once there was enough room for him, he felt a large dip beside him as Shiro settled in. It was a narrow fit for both of them to be on it together, but once Shiro was laid on his side and had his arm around Keith, it was doable. 

Keith let Shiro pull him onto his side to rest against his chest. Keith managed to move his arm up so his hand was resting on the side of Shiro’s neck as he felt his chin settle against his temple. He could feel Shiro's pulse from where his hand was; it was fast. Keith managed to lift his head just enough to nuzzle his nose against the other man's jaw. 

"Just try and relax, okay?" Keith gently sipped his hand into Shiro's hair and stroked back through it slowly. Finally he felt Shiro's arm come around his waist and the larger man relaxed against him, his chin come to rest against Keith's temple, and Keith closed his eyes, exhaustion tugging at his limbs to let himself drift off. He only hoped that whatever Shiro saw, whatever happened, that Shiro wouldn't dream about it while they slept. He didn't want to admit it, but he hadn't seen Shiro that scared in a very long time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So as you might be able to tell, I switched the pov to Keith from now until probably the end of the story.

Five days had passed since Keith fully recovered from the rescue, and things couldn’t be more tense between him and his best friend. Shiro had been acting strange, more than usual. He seemed to avoid eye contact whenever possible, apologized quickly and excessively for things that didn’t require an apology, and he seemed to startle any time Keith approached him from behind. Worst of all were the nightmares. Shiro had nightmares from time to time, but for the past five days, he’s had them every night. Though the two of them don’t share a room, Keith’s mattress is against the wall he shares with Shiro, and he can hear the man shouting when he wakes up in a panic. Every time, Keith went to his door, knocked softly, asked if Shiro wanted him to come in. Usually the answer would be yes, but the past few days Shiro has refused, even when Keith insisted. 

The few times Keith caught Shiro napping, he always sat near, keeping an eye on the larger man. He knew Shiro was going to wake in a panic eventually, and when he did, Keith was by his side; but the look Shiro gave him, the reluctance to touch him and embrace him left Keith feeling cold. Usually Shiro melted into his arms, relaxed against his gentle hands, but now, Shiro seemed to be scared of the contact for some unknown, forbidden reason.

No matter how many times Keith has asked, how many times he’s pried and pried, Shiro has refused to admit what’s wrong. It left a vast ache in Keith’s chest to watch Shiro go through this level of pain without being allowed to come to his aid. What could have happened that left such a deep scar in Shiro for him to behave this way? 

Keith’s frustration partially laid in his inability to recall any memory of the incident. Part of him wanted to remember, so that he could have some clue to what may be causing Shiro’s distress. On the other hand, Keith was terrified of what the memories might do to him. Seeing Shiro’s reaction to everything caused him to wonder, if someone seeing it from the outside was so traumatized, what would it do to Keith to remember it all? Keith couldn’t afford to be weakened by something like that. He needed to stay strong for his friend, who so desperately needed someone dependable to lean on, to hold him up. If Keith became crippled the same way as Shiro, there would be no one there to support the Black Paladin, and the team would surely disintegrate. 

If Keith couldn’t find a way to get through to Shiro, to scale those walls he’s forced around himself, then his own sanity would be irrelevant, because Shiro would just continue to deteriorate under the weight of his own troubles. Keith _had_ to get through to him, for his own sake, and the sake of the team that depended on their Black Paladin’s leadership. 

Their next mission was coming up fast. It was an essential step to securing the territory the rebellion had claimed from the Galra empire; this was the last system they had to secure in order to gain control over a critical choke point in galactic space. The mission was relatively straightforward. They were to send a covert team to disable a shield generator on the surface of a dwarf planet, crippling the enemy outpost’s main defenses and allowing bombardment of the structure from orbit, which would be administered by the Castle of Lions. Voltron would be providing cover for the Castle against the enemy Galra fleet stationed on the other end of the choke point that would almost be guaranteed to arrive. In order for this to go smoothly, the shield generator needed to be taken out quickly so that all of the lions had time to return to orbit to take up a defensive position around the Castle. 

The paladins had done dozens of covert missions like this before, and under much more stressful and tricky circumstances, so Keith should be feeling confident about it. The only problem was Shiro.

Could the team count on Shiro to be thinking clearly? To take the necessary risks, and approach things from a logical standpoint? Keith wasn’t so sure. If Shiro couldn’t even open up to his closest friend, the person he trusts more than anyone in the world, how was he going to open up to the entire team when they form Voltron? Keith couldn’t deny he could feel his bond with Black slipping. Red felt apprehensive whenever Shiro was near, and she could feel Keith’s frustration with him. It was only recently that the two had discovered their bond with each other was so strong, that they could pilot each other’s lions as if they were their own. Shiro was able to take Keith’s red bayard and use it like it was black. Not even Allura or Coran had seen anything like it. But now, as quickly as it had formed, it was dissolving again.

Keith tried to push the thought away as he pulled on his paladin chest plate. There was no point in worrying about it now; he had to focus on the mission at hand. The only option he had now to resolve the worry building like a tight knot in his stomach was to push through and deal with things as they came. 

The Paladins, Allura and Coran all gathered on the Castle’s bridge to review their plan of attack. As Shiro stepped towards the holographic terminal, his eyes hovered over Keith, who was watching him nervously, then swept past him after only a second. Keith’s crossed arms tightened across his chest, and he forced himself to stare at the holographic model of the enemy outpost with everyone else. 

Shiro’s voice was steady and solid enough as he went over the mission briefing. They’d already finalized the plan before the previous mission, so it was fresh in Keith’s mind. Lance, Hunk and Shiro would remain with the Castle in orbit, to keep on alert in case any stray Galra patrols came their way. Pidge would fly in with her cloak and hack into the enemy’s ground turret and alarm system, quietly disabling their defenses and preventing detection of Red when Keith flies in to take out the shield generator.

Then Keith’s jaw clenched. 

“After Pidge disables the turret and alarm network, Keith and I will fly in and board the outpost to take down the underground shield generator from the inside. After the shields are down, everyone is to immediately rendezvous back at the Castle for defense. Any questions?” 

Keith’s eyes darted around the room, and everyone seemed to have the same slightly perplexed look. The first draft of the plan only sent Keith in to disable the generator… everyone had agreed that it was a one man job, and it would be more beneficial for Black to hang back in orbit to play defense. Why in the world did Shiro change plans last minute?

“Uhh,” Hunk started. “Wasn’t the original plan for you to stay with me and Lance by the Castle? You know, in case a giant Galra fleet decides to show up unannounced? Like the fleet patrolling on the other side of the choke point?”

“Yeah,” Keith chimed in loudly. “I thought we agreed the generator was a one man job.” 

Shiro’s mouth hardened into a line as he glanced over at Keith, fixing him with an irritated look. “There may be more defenses within the base than we had previously accounted for, so I modified the plan so I could come with Keith and give him backup. It’s highly unlikely that the Galra fleet will jump in to investigate unless the outpost is alerted to our presence before we can take out the generator, which is why Pidge is deactivating the alarm system.”

“Yeah, but you said yourself on the recon mission last week that the outpost only has a skeleton crew,” Lance piped up. “We already accounted for all of their defensive numbers and we’ve been keeping a close eye to make sure no reinforcements showed up, so what gives?”

Shiro’s mouth twitched with annoyance. “Listen, guys, this is the plan. Yes, I modified it slightly from the original version based on new intel that I didn’t think was necessary for the briefing, since it would only affect the area around the shield generator. Nobody else has to worry about it except me and Keith. Clear?” 

His tone was clearly one of irritation, and he frantically side-eyed Keith with an intense glare, daring him to speak up. Keith knew Shiro was deliberately lying to the rest of the team about the “new intel” in order to get them to stop questioning his last-minute change of plan.

Everyone was clearly unsettled, but nobody spoke up again, so Shiro ordered them to their lions. Keith hung back, and once the rest of the paladins had already descended in their elevators, Keith locked Shiro’s eyes with his, and found the taller man intentionally staring at the hologram instead of him.

“So you’re lying to the team now?” Keith said loudly. 

Shiro kept spinning the hologram with his hand, ignoring Keith’s glare. “Don’t worry about it. Lance and Hunk will be fine on their own. I just want to make sure nothing goes wrong at the generator.” 

“Why? I’ll be fine. Do you seriously not trust me to take out a shield generator with only a handful of sentries guarding it?” Keith couldn’t help it coming out in a half growl. But Shiro had deactivated the hologram and was now stepping onto his paladin terminal. 

“You’re really going to leave Lance and Hunk hanging back alone? What if a huge Galra patrol shows up? Shiro!” 

Shiro responded by hitting the activation at his terminal to send him descending past the floor of the Castle bridge. 

“Fuck!” Keith cursed, the twisting, anxious frustration building inside his chest again. Shiro brushing Keith off was one thing, but lying to the team seriously wasn’t Shiro. His insistence to accompany Keith to the generator was wildly out of his character and made Keith wonder if he was really so anxious about anything happening to Keith, he’d risk putting the others in danger just to make himself feel better. He stalked to his terminal, hitting the activation button that took him down the elevator and the long, somewhat unnecessary boarding procedure for his lion. 

Once he had launched, he purposely hovered near to Black, feeling the two lion’s consciousnesses butting up against each other with unbearable friction. Red was just as irritable as Keith, and Black felt like a solid, heavy mass trying to physically push Keith as far away as possible. Is that how Shiro felt right now?

Pidge was already on her way down, cloak engaged, and for the rest of them it was a waiting game. Keith opened up a private channel to Black, wondering if he should try a different approach.

“Shiro…. I’m sorry,” Keith said reluctantly. 

Shiro didn’t seem to have heard him. 

“It’s just….You’re scaring me,” Keith said quietly.

He saw just a twitch of Shiro’s eyebrows as the man shifted in his seat, glancing toward the comm panel where Keith’s face was displayed in a small rectangle. 

“I know something’s wrong.” Keith felt his throat tightening. The urge to spill all of his emotions out suddenly hit him full force and it took every ounce of mental strength to beat the feeling back into the cage it clambered out of. 

“Talk to me. Please,” Keith said softly instead. He watched Shiro’s eyes dart this way and that. He saw the man bite his lower lip and let out a deep sigh. 

“Now’s not a good time, Keith,” Shiro said, voice tight.

Keith felt about to explode. His fists gripped Red’s controls so tight he thought they might shatter. He didn’t want to wait until after the mission. He didn’t want to run the risk of something going horribly wrong, again, and this time, losing Shiro instead-

“The network is down, guys!” Pidge’s energized voice filled Keith’s comms and he shut down the link to Black. 

“Good work, Pidge. Hunk, Lance, hold down the fort, Keith and I will be back as soon as we can,” Shiro’s strong voice followed, and once the transmission ended, Keith begrudgingly followed Black towards the small planet. He let his emotions settle into an uncomfortable rock in his stomach as he started the descent into the dwarf’s thin atmosphere. 

Once they had safely landed, Keith exited his lion and was surprised to see Shiro waiting outside of black, facing towards Keith, their eyes finally meeting. 

“You don’t need to worry, Keith, I’m fine,” Shiro said quietly with a smile meant to reassure. Keith knew what he was doing. This was Shiro, trying to tell Keith to lay off. He was trying to communicate to Keith that he could handle the task at hand and that Keith needed to stop trying to weasel Shiro’s emotions out of him. 

Keith swallowed the lump in his throat as Shiro turned, and they headed toward the outpost’s external doors. Shiro laid his right hand on the control panel and the door opened. Whatever alarm would normally have been activated at the detection of a prisoner code was scrambled thanks to Pidge’s hacking. 

Keith stepped forward, but suddenly felt Shiro’s arm firmly across his chest, keeping him from advancing. Keith raised an eyebrow, and Shiro stepped in front of him, taking point. 

“Shiro, let me go first, I can attack easier with my bayard-” He stopped short trying to talk sense into the man, because it seemed to Keith that Shiro had lost all of his. He let Shiro lead the way, too emotionally exhausted to argue with him. Once they approached the room holding the massive shield generator, Shiro stayed by the door. “You plant the charges, I’ll watch your back.” No eye contact, again. 

“Where are the sentries? Weren’t there supposed to be five in front of the generator room?” Keith asked, suddenly getting a sick feeling in his gut.

“Not sure. Maybe they’re on patrol,” Shiro suggested with a light shrug. “I’ll keep an eye out for them.” 

Keith let out a tight sigh as he approached the generator, but something made him stop short about thirty feet away. There were blinking lights, lots of them. As Keith’s eyes darted over each of the lights he realized there seemed to be many small devices all over the generator that didn’t seem native to its structure. They were flashing red, faster and faster, almost like…

Bombs.

“Uhh… Shiro-” Keith said, his voice constricted with panic. He turned back toward the door to where the Black Paladin had been waiting, and saw across his wide-eyed, panicked face that he’d noticed the same thing. Suddenly a shrill, prolonged beeping filled his ears, and he was being tackled, pinned against the floor. “SHIRO-” he screamed, as brightness filled the room, and a force like a freight train threw the two of them into the air. 

***

The muffled sounds of laser fire and explosions greeted Keith from his unconsciousness. He could feel himself being jostled, and the frantic voice of the smallest paladin filled his ears. Keith groaned, opening his eyes slowly. His whole body was on fire, and he wasn’t sure if he had a single unbroken bone in his body judging by the pain alone. He managed to roll himself onto his side, pushing himself into a sitting position with his shaking arms, sitting still for a moment until his head stopped spinning. He clambered to his feet, bracing himself against the wall, and nearly fell into the cockpit of the Green Lion. 

“Wha- Pidge?” Keith mumbled. He’d expected to be in his own lion, in Red, but somehow he had ended up here. 

“What- Keith? How are you even awake?” Pidge’s voice was startled, yet incredulous. 

Keith was still leaning heavily against the wall, trying to process where he was and how he got there. He groaned sharply as Green shook with the blast from stray laser fire, causing his vision to spin. “What- What happened- Where’s Red?” Keith mumbled, squeezing his eyes shut again as vertigo threatened to send him back onto the ground where he belonged. 

“You got blown up by the shield generator! And now we’re scrambling to escape the huge Galra fleet that just jumped into the system-” 

Keith’s mind sluggishly attempted to process the information. Shield generator? That’s right, they were on a mission, Keith was going to take out the shield generator so they could attack the outpost, but then… then-

“Where’s Shiro,” Keith’s voice cracked as adrenaline punched him in the chest. 

Shiro had pinned him to the ground just before the explosion. They were only thirty feet away from it when it went off, and Keith could barely keep himself standing on his own. He couldn’t imagine what state Shiro must be in if he took the full force of the blast on his back. 

Pidge went quiet. 

“Pidge,” Keith said in a firm growl. “Where. Is. Shiro.” 

The young paladin’s voice changed immediately into one of fear. “Shiro was… He was hurt, bad. He’s with Hunk-” 

“What do you mean he was hurt bad? How bad?” Keith demanded. “Patch me in to hunk. NOW, Pidge-” She opened a line without saying anything. Keith didn’t want to yell at her, he knew she was likely almost as scared as he was. But he needed to know. 

“Hunk, how bad is Shiro hurt,” Keith almost yelled. Hunk looked pale. 

“Hes… he’s… I-I don’t know,” Hunk stammered, clearly distraught at the situation.

Keith slammed his fist on the control panel as he felt his eyes sting with tears. “Damnit - Didn’t you even check his wounds?” 

“I-I- I’m sorry, I had to think fast - There were sentries on top of us, I nearly got blasted away just pulling him into my lion-”

“Dammit,” Keith hissed again. Hunk continued, his speech fast and shaky.

“I’m almost at the castle, Coran’s standing by with a healing pod, But I need to drop off the black lion first-”

“NO, get Shiro to the pod first, damnit Hunk!” Keith shouted, and pidge visibly recoiled. Hunk shut his mouth and nodded, then closed the channel.

“Sorry,” Keith said through clenched teeth. His entire body was screaming because he couldn’t be by Shiro’s side right now, couldn’t see for himself how bad of a condition he was in, couldn’t even provide first aid. Why in the hell they put Keith on the Green Lion instead of Yellow with Shiro was beyond him, but it was no use asking now. His hand was gripping the back of pidge’s seat so hard it began to ache. 

“Can’t you go any faster?” Keith growled, and Pidge wordlessly began to manipulate her engine panel, and Keith felt Green boost, nearly throwing him back into the cargo bay behind him. 

Before the Green lion even touched down in the hangar bay, Keith had already demanded Pidge open the drop hatch. He coasted to the ground with his jetpack in the direction of the Yellow lion’s hangar bay, then sprinted through the connecting halls, skidding to a stop as the Black lion settled to the ground with a metallic groan. The yellow lion barely fit next to her, but Hunk was able to land, and Keith immediately raced to the opened muzzle, Coran with the pod at his side, already waiting.

“Shiro-” Keith called out as he saw Hunk with the Black Paladin limp across his shoulders. The white parts of his armor were so scorched and cracked he was barely recognizable.

Before Keith could get within ten feet of the pod, Shiro had already been laid inside and the screen sealed over him. Keith nearly crashed into it as he skidded to a stop, Both hands planted firmly along the screen, the pod beeping furiously at the contact. 

“Shiro- How bad is he?” He shouted in a voice laced with desperation. He fixed Coran with a panicked glare, and Coran returned his stare with a slight startle, but then composed himself. 

“He looks bad, Keith. He’ll need to stay in here for at least several vargas, if not, quintents.” 

“Dammit,” Keith growled. Looking down at him, he didn’t know how his friend was even alive. He looked worse than Keith had ever seen anyone. It briefly reminded him of some of the victims his father had pulled out of burning buildings…. The ones that didn’t make it on the ambulance ride to the hospital.

Keith felt hot tears streaming down his cheeks, and immediately turned away, ripping his helmet off and throwing it at the ground, where it bounced with a loud crack. He shoved his arm against his face to wipe away the tears, but just stained his face further with dark soot. “Fuck,” he growled through clenched teeth. 

“Keith-” 

“Don’t fucking say anything,” Keith snapped, sobs beginning to creep their way up his chest. He stormed off, not able to stand the sight of his dearest friend on the brink of death. 

Once he made it to his room, his legs gave out. He collapsed to his knees in front of his bed, his arms and head slumping down onto the mattress. Shiro’s jacket laid atop the sheets from where he left it after the previous night. It was the one night when Shiro came to Keith’s room after a nightmare, instead of waiting for Keith to come to him. It was the one night that Shiro actually let Keith hold him, let him comfort him, and almost told him what was wrong, what was causing him so much pain. But he didn’t. 

The smell that Keith always knew as comforting crept into his nose as he buried his face into the worn leather. His fists clenched handfuls of the soft material as he let out the sobs he’d had clenched deep in his chest for the past five days. He wished the gentle scent of the person he cared about more than anything could soothe him in this moment, but it only made his sorrow and pain feel more infinite.


	3. Chapter 3

Keith sat by Shiro's pod for hours. He’d been in there for almost a whole day now, and the previously mangled and unconscious man in the pod had slowly started to look better. His scorched and ruined armor had been dematerialized by the pod, as well as his black undersuit, and in its place, the pod constructed a thin, opaque white suit over his body. It felt like Keith was stuck in a trance, just staring at Shiro’s face, watching the pod’s display as the silhouette of a person slowly changed color from mostly orange, to yellow, to green, to cyan. Almost all of him was cyan now, indicating most of his body was 90% healed or more. Keith knew it wouldn’t be long until he woke up now.

Keith’s palm rested against the pod’s screen barrier directly across from where Shiro’s left hand was. It was torture to be forced to watch his friend from the outside, unable to offer the physical comfort the two had grown so accustomed to sharing.

Most of the time he’d sat there, Keith was fighting the urge to pass out. The last time Keith got any sleep was before the mission, over 48 hours ago. He hadn’t gotten up to eat, sleep, or do anything else since he followed Coran into the med bay with Shiro. He hadn’t even changed out of his broken and scorched armor; his fingers had carved concentric circles, lines, and hashes into the caked soot on his armor out of nerves. 

Keith refused the idea that he would be asleep when Shiro finally came to; he needed to be there to comfort him and tell him it’s okay. 

To tell him he’s sorry for doubting his decision to go with Keith to the generator.

Maybe he had some reason to feel like something might go wrong, that the Galra knew they were coming? But why on earth would he not have told the rest of the team about it?  
Or was it for a more selfish reason? 

Could Shiro have felt guilty about Keith being captured on the previous mission? Could he feel that it was somehow his fault that Keith had been subjected to torture, and his way of apologizing was to obsessively protect Keith, which ended with him trying to sacrifice himself? In what twisted reality would Shiro think that dying would somehow make up for that? Maybe it was just to make himself feel better.. But that wasn’t like him either. 

That was pretty typical for Shiro. He always felt protective of Keith. He was the one who nurtured and supported him at the Garrison, took him under his wing, helped him be who he is today.  
But that didn’t explain why Shiro seemed so fucking scared after he rescued Keith. There was something missing, something that would cause him to behave that strangely afterwards. 

The younger paladin looked back at Shiro’s face. Even if he confronted him about these thoughts he’s had, all this stuff he’s had time to analyze and infer while waiting for him to wake up, Shiro could still refuse to give him answers. 

It was infuriating. Frustrating. He loved this man more than anything else in the universe, and he still drove Keith up the wall sometimes, and about big, important things, not just trivial disagreements. How was Keith supposed to support him, keep his head on straight, aid him with the burden of being a leader while also having unbelievable amounts of trauma if Shiro just refused to open up?

Keith let his head fall into his hands then, fingers curling in his own hair as his brow furrowed, then relaxed. _The man I love more than anything…_ Keith realized that’s how he’d been thinking about it lately. That’s how it must be for Shiro’s suffering to cut so deep into him. 

Keith let his hands fall with a sigh and looked at Shiro’s face once more. Still, serene, like nothing was wrong. He wasn’t even dreaming this time. Keith’s eyelids started to droop as the exhaustion weighed down on his shoulders again. Maybe he could just close his eyes for a few moments. 

He laid his head down against the pod’s barrier, finding it slightly cool to the touch despite not being made of glass. He let his eyes close as he let out a sigh.

Whether his feelings were something beyond friendship or not, it wouldn’t matter if Shiro kept on his habit of attempting self sacrifice. He needed to get through to the man and figure out what was messing with his head so badly that he thought that type of behavior was remotely acceptable. 

The quiet beeping and whirring of the healing pod drifted in and out of his acknowledgment as Keith started to doze off, until suddenly he heard a loud beeping noise and he shot straight up in his seat. He watched as the protective screen of the pod flashed, and then dematerialized in a gentle puff of vapor. 

Keith sat frozen, his chest growing tight as Shiro groaned softly and his eyes fluttered open a crack. 

“Sh.. Shiro-” Keith stammered, shaking himself from his trance to lean forward and slip his hand over the other man’s. 

“Nnh… Keith?” Shiro whispered weakly. He turned his head towards the sound of Keith's voice, peering up at him through squinting eyes. 

“Hey,” Keith said, voice shaky. He tried to smile but couldn’t fake it. The corners of his mouth only twitched. His fingers slid between Shiro’s with ease, without Keith even thinking about it.  
Shiro squeezed his hand weakly, and suddenly Keith’s throat closed up, and he feared he would burst into tears again. He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know where to start.

“‘M… sorry,” Shiro mumbled. 

Keith blinked. “No,” he murmured. “Don’t.” 

Shiro's mouth closed and he looked away. 

“What the hell is wrong with you, Shiro,” Keith said through clenched teeth. He couldn’t keep it in any longer. His hand gripped Shiro’s like a vice. 

The wide-eyed look of hurt Shiro gave him in return sent a jolt of pain through Keith’s chest. He shook his head. “I'm.. I’m sorry…”

Was that how this was going to go? Keith was just going to lose his temper and beat the other man down with his emotions? Keith didn’t want that.

“I just… I don’t understand… You need to fucking tell me what’s going on. Please. You NEED to tell me. I can’t keep doing this…” Keith let his throat get choked up then. He heard his own breath hitching in his lungs as he stared the other down.

Shiro’s brow furrowed and his face transformed into one of hurt, but acknowledgment. Keith knew Shiro had heard those words before.

“Keith…”

“I can’t keep taking silence for an answer. You’re fucked up, I can tell, you KNOW I can tell, you need to TELL me what’s going on or else I can’t fucking help you.” His voice was shaking. “What happened when you went to rescue me?”

Shiro swallowed. His eyes darted everywhere except at Keith’s face.

“You…”

Keith fixed Shiro with a stare. He sat frozen as he waited for Shiro to finally spit it out.

“You almost died, Keith…”

If Keith hadn’t been left to his own devices to figure that out already, he might have been more shocked.

“I… I should have…”

Here it comes. 

“Been the one in the Galra’s hands?” Keith finished his sentence, but his voice deflated into a rocky whisper. 

Shiro just looked at him, then looked away. 

“I know how you think, Shiro…” Keith said with a sigh. “You know I’m gonna tell you… thinking like that is pointless. It’s over. I’m here and I’m fine. You don’t have to punish yourself for everything bad that happens to me. You aren’t my guardian angel, Shiro, you’re just a person, fighting a war.” 

He took a deep breath, watching Shiro’s face closely. He was still looking away, but his grip was tighter on Keith’s hand. “Bad shit is gonna happen to all of us. All we can really do is …. I don’t know…get through it. Just try and get through it. Survive. I know you’ve been through so much already and you’re trying to do so much, and all I want to do is help.” 

He could see Shiro’s eyes go glassy. 

“And for fuck’s sake. Getting yourself killed isn’t going to make up for any fucking mistake you think you made. How do you think it’s gonna make me feel if you die?” His voice cracked, and he barely got out the last three words. He felt his own tears falling on his knee. His vision had gone blurry before he even started saying his last point.

Keith watched Shiro’s mouth open, then close again. He knew Shiro was going to apologize. He didn’t want him to. He didn’t have to apologize. Keith already forgave him. He would forgive him for anything. 

“I’m sorry, Keith…”

Keith relaxed his hand in Shiro’s, realizing it must be hurting him. 

“I am too. I didn’t want to yell at you, but I just... I need you to understand - You don’t have to hide everything from me like you do with the rest of the team. I’m here for you. I want you to lean on me.” 

“I know,” Shiro whispered.

“I won’t break. No matter how much,” Keith murmured. “I can’t break.”

He opened his mouth, but had to swallow back the first three words that popped into his head. “Do you understand now?”

Shiro nodded. He pulled his hand from the other’s. Keith sat back and looked at the floor, letting out a shaky breath, wiping his tears away. From the edge of his vision he saw Shiro's legs swing over the side of the pod next to him, and felt two strong arms slide around him, pulling him in. He felt the bump of Shiro's nose and chin resting in the crook of his shoulder. 

Keith squeezed him back, as hard as he could.

They held each other like that for several minutes, neither one of them wanting to budge. It was refreshing for Keith to be in Shiro’s arms again instead of the other way around; it made him feel safe. He just wished the circumstance was different.

“I’m sorry, Shiro… I’m sorry. I know… I know you're dealing with so much right now-” His voice was hitched with sobs as he spoke.

“No, Keith. You’re right.” 

Keith couldn't’ help the tears flowing even harder. He gripped fistfuls of Shiro's thin, white suit in his hands as he pressed his face into the man’s neck. He felt Shiro’s head lift from where it was against Keith's shoulder, and lifted it to give him a nuzzle. His broad, gentle hand moved across the back of Keith’s shoulders in a slow rub, back and forth.

“I’m sorry I worried you so much… I didn’t mean to…” The gravel in his whisper tore at Keith’s heartstrings. He knew Shiro meant every word of what he was saying.

“I know,” Keith said, voice muffled against the other’s skin.

“I just didn't… I couldn’t let anything happen to you again… I couldn’t, Keith…” 

Keith just held him tighter. 

“Not after I- not after…”

Keith waited for Shiro to finish, listening intently. After a few moments, Keith pulled his face from Shiro’s neck, cheeks damp with tears. “After what, Shiro?” he whispered, looking at the man’s tear streaked face.

“After I heard you…”

Keith’s eyes widened, and his heart thumped in his chest. “What,” he whispered in a shaky voice.

“After I heard you pleading… begging me to make them stop….” Shiro’s face contorted and more tears flowed. Keith’s heart nearly stopped in his chest.

Shiro’s anxiety finally made sense.

The shorter man pulled his hands from around the other’s waist and brought them to each side of his head. He gazed into those dark, wet eyes, watching as tears dropped from their wells and streaked down his cheeks. He pulled gently with his hands until their foreheads rested against one another. Shiro’s arms tightened around the other as if expecting him to disappear at any moment.

“I’m sorry I… “ Keith murmured, but Shiro smiled.

“It's not your fault. I’m the one who got you stuck there. I’m the one who should have been there.”

Keith shook his head desperately. “No, Shiro- don’t…Don’t talk like that, please don’t…”

“I’m not gonna let anyone hurt you like that again,” Shiro said, his voice firm, insistent as he stared deep into the red paladin’s dark navy eyes. The way Shiro said it to him, his eyes burning into Keith's after avoiding looking at him for so long, made Keith’s cheeks burn; but his expression immediately softened and he glanced down between Keith's eyes and the floor. After a moment he pulled away, letting his arms loosen around the other.

“You still don’t remember anything about it, do you?” Shiro asked quietly.

“No.”

“Good,” Shiro whispered. “I hope at least you’re spared the memories of…. Something like that.”

Keith felt his stomach tighten just a little, but then Shiro smiled, and Keith let his expression soften. The taller man embraced him again, and Keith tucked his head into Shiro’s shoulder and squeezed back tightly.

Holding each other like this had slowly become natural without either of them realizing it, and as such, Keith began to remember how exhausted he was. He could feel Shiro's nose nuzzling against his head..  
“You probably haven’t gotten any sleep.” Shiro’s breath tickled his forehead.

Keith stifled a yawn against Shiro's neck. “No...”

“Then let’s go lay down.” 

As relief was finally able to wash away his stress, Keith found the energy to smile to himself. That sounded extremely nice right now.

He stood, letting Shiro get up too, and they walked towards the paladin’s quarters. They both hesitated in front of each of their doors. 

“My bed’s just a few inches wider I think,” Shiro mused. 

Keith smiled and stepped back over to him, following him inside. Keith reached for the heavy paladin chest plate on his shoulders and was about to remove it, but Shiro’s gentle hands curling around his wrists stopped him.

“Let me,” Shiro said softly. Keith relaxed and let the taller man gently tug off his still scorched and cracked armor pieces. His limbs and joints were stiff and sore, and several times he let out soft noises of pain, only to be gently helped by the other. Keith felt his cheeks begin to burn with blush as he started pulling down the zipper of his undersuit along his chest. The way Shiro’s fingers gently glided over Keith’s bruised and sore skin as they pulled off the undersuit made him shiver. 

“You refused a pod...” Shiro said quietly. It was obvious from the fact he never changed out of his armor, but the way Shiro said it this time didn’t make it sound like he was being scolded. He felt gentle fingertips, five warm, five cold and rigid, glide gently over the back of his shoulders and down his arms. Keith just closed his eyes and let the other roam over his body. He felt Shiro’s arms slide around his waist and he leaned back against the strong chest of the man behind him. He let his head fall back to his shoulder, opening his eyes slowly to find Shiro’s face close and looking down at him. His eyes weren’t focused on Keith’s, but not on the ground either. Somewhere in between. He felt Shiro's hands slide over his, and their fingers interlaced. He closed his eyes again.

“Shiro…”

He felt soft, warm breath on his lips, and then there were soft lips on his. Keith craned his head back further.

Shiro pulled back after a few long moments, and Keith looked up at him again, squeezing his hands. 

“I love you.”

Shiro’s eyes studied him, looked deep down into his very being as Keith met his gaze. A smile curved his lips, and his voice was a quiet murmur. 

“I love you too, Keith.” 

~End~


End file.
